Editing 20Q (section)

==Principle and history==
The principle is that the player thinks of something and the 20Q artificial intelligence asks a series of  questions before guessing what the player is thinking. This artificial intelligence learns on its own with the information relayed back to the players who interact with it, and is not programmed. The player can answer these questions with: ''Yes'', ''No'', ''Unknown'', and ''Sometimes.'' The experiment is based on the classic word game of Twenty Questions, and on the computer game "Animals," popular in the early 1970s, which used a somewhat simpler method to guess an animal.<ref>with information from: LiCalzi O'Connell, Pamela. "Vegetables And Minerals On The Radar" The New York Times. March 27, 2003; Burgener, Robin, computer architect, inventor.</ref>

The 20Q AI uses an [[artificial neural network]] to pick the questions and to guess.<ref name=goddard/><ref>[http://stage.20q.net/flat/rbqanda.html Official 20Q Q&A]</ref> After the player has answered the twenty questions posed (sometimes fewer), 20Q makes a guess. If it is incorrect, it asks more questions, then guesses again. It makes guesses based on what it has learned; it is not programmed with information or what the inventor thinks. Answers to any question are based on players’ interpretations of the questions asked. Newer editions were made for different categories, such as music 20Q which has the player think of a song, and Harry Potter 20Q, which has the player think of something from the world of the [[Harry Potter]] series.<ref>{{cite web |title=20Q – Cool Tools |url=http://www.kk.org/cooltools/archives/000725.php |website=kk.org}}</ref><ref>{{cite web |title=20Q.net Inc. |url=http://20q.net/faq.html#anchor25 |website=20q.net}}</ref>

The 20Q AI can draw its own conclusions on how to interpret the information. It can be described as more of a [[folk taxonomy]] than a [[Taxonomy (general)|taxonomy]]. Its knowledge develops with every game played. In this regard, the online version of the 20Q AI can be inaccurate because it gathers its answers from what people ''think'' rather than from what people ''know''. Limitations of taxonomy are often overcome by the AI itself because it can learn and adapt. For example, if the player was thinking of a "Horse" and answered "No" to the question "Is it an animal?," the AI will, nevertheless, guess correctly, despite being told that a horse is not an animal.

Patent applications in the US and Europe were submitted in 2005.<ref>{{Cite patent|country=US|number=2006230008|status=discontinued application|title=Artificial neural network guessing method and game|pubdate=2006-10-12|inventor1-last=Burgener|inventor1-first=Robin}}</ref><ref>{{Cite patent|country=EP|number=1710735|title=Artificial neural network guessing method and game|pubdate=2006-10-11|assign=20Q.net Inc.|inventor1-last=Burgener|inventor1-first=Robin|status=withdrawn application}}</ref>

In August 2014, 20Q.net Inc., with Brashworks Studios, developed and released an iOS [[iPad]] version available at the Apple [[iTunes]] store.